The Millennium Development Goals are the most successful global anti-poverty push in history!

With 500 days left to the 15-year target date, learn about the progress that's been made toward these goals so far, what work still needs to be done in the fight against poverty, and where we're headed beyond 2015.

Marking the World Day Against Child Labor today, Jesse Eaves – our policy advisor in D.C. – writes about his recent trip to the Philippines, where World Vision is working with communities to stop hazardous child labor in the sugarcane fields.

Meet 12-year-old Oscar, and read how he's helping to prevent the job that he might have had without this program.

Kassahun Kebede with his wife and their little child holding a birth certificate, which is uncommon in Ethiopia. (Photo: 2012 Aklilu Kassaye/World Vision)

Protecting children starts at birth, with a simple piece of paper we all take for granted—a birth certificate. But around the world, as many as 45% of all children under the age of five don't have one.

The Girls Count Act is a new bill in Congress right now that can help address this gap, and help ensure that all children count and are protected.

Kicking off our "Advocacy 101" series, World Vision's advocacy mobilization specialist, Amanda Morgan, digs into the basics of advocacy -- and the biblical model that forms the foundation of our approach to it.

Today, Jesse Eaves, World Vision's senior policy adviser for child protection in Washington, D.C., describes how child sponsorship is an investment in a child's future, and how advocacy -- speaking out on behalf of those affected by poverty and injustice -- increases the return on that investment.

Today, after more than two years of countless phone calls, frustrating roadblocks, and non-stop prayer, your voices rang through the halls of Congress. The Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act passed through the House of Representatives -- only a few weeks after the same provision passed through the Senate!

Rich Stearns, president of World Vision U.S., offers his thoughts on today's election -- and the challenges and responsibilities that will be faced by the president of the United States during the next four years.

The United Nations has declared October 11 as International Day of the Girl. As illustrated by the tragic story of Mao* in Cambodia, extreme poverty often prevents girls from getting an education and leaves them vulnerable to the worst kinds of exploitation.

World Vision works globally to help change this reality -- and to empower girls and women to reach their full, God-given potential.

One year ago, the Trafficking Victims Protection Act -- the centerpiece of U.S. policies against modern-day slavery around the world -- expired because Congress failed to reauthorize it in time. Since then, concerned citizens and groups who work to protect children have advocated for the reauthorization bill to be passed.

One of my favorite bands is Band of Horses. I love all kinds of music and listen to different types, based on the mood I am in at that moment -- but I can always listen to Band of Horses. It’s all about their lyrics, which I find creative and often very thought-provoking.

Recently, Jessica Bosquette shared how she saw the Trafficking Victims Protection Act make a difference in the lives of children in the Dominican Republic. She also shared that if Americans failed to tell their senators they want the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act to pass, the positive results it has yielded will be gone. Today, Jesse Eaves, WV Policy Advisor on child protection, provides an update on the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act. He has news that requires a response-- if Americans want to see results, we must act soon.

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There's no doubt about it – it's been a scorcher in Washington, D.C.

Luckily for us, the heat outside is only matched by the heat inside Congress to take action on the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA) S.1301.

But now we can turn up the heat. We have to make it a political necessity for U.S. senators to vote ‘yes’ for this legislation.